A native of Pennsylvania, the self-taught Horace Pippin achieved widespread fame when this painting drew the attention of artist-illustrator N. C. Wyeth in 1937. Constructed of dense, thick layers of paint that convey tactility and texture, Cabin in the Cotton is considered an exemplar of Pippin’s untutored style. The painting is primarily interpreted biographically, as an expression of his African-American heritage; however, the widespread fascination with southern life and culture in the 1930s may also have driven his choice of motif. In that decade, Bing Crosby and Cab Calloway sang songs entitled “Cabin in the Cotton,” and Bette Davis starred in a movie of the same title.